1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of connecting a passenger bridge to an aircraft, and to an arrangement for that end.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many airports now include passenger bridges which are connected to an aircraft from a terminal building and via which passengers embark and disembark. Several different types of passenger bridges are known to the art, of which one is a so-called Mobile Telescopic Bridge (MTB) that includes a number of telescoping parts, where the outermost part is supported by a bogie that has separately driven wheels. The bogie functions to maneuver the passenger bridge on the airport gate area apron toward and away from an aircraft. Located at the connection of the passenger bridge to a terminal building is a rotunda, which is rotatable about a vertical axis and which is supported by a ground-anchored pillar. Located in the outermost part of the passenger bridge is a cabin that can be rotated relative to the outermost telescopic element of the bridge. The cabin is that part of the arrangement intended for connection to the door of an aircraft.
A serious problem resides in the relatively long time taken for passengers to board the aircraft and also to disembark when the aircraft is parked at a so-called gate. That means that the time lapse from the time at which the aircraft has landed to the time at which it can re-start is unnecessarily long, which is both uneconomic and causes the passengers to feel that they are forced to wait unnecessarily.
It is undesirable for passengers to wait on the aircraft parking area for safety reasons.
Aircraft tend to be both larger and longer. A serious technical problem arises with regard to connecting a telescopic passenger bridge to a rear door that is located aft of a wing of an aircraft, due to the significant distance from the rotunda to a rear door. That distance can exceed 30-40 meters. There is found in that respect a solution in which the passenger bridge is suspended from a device that resembles a crane, so that the bridge is able to extend stably over the wing to an extent that enables the bridge to be connected to a rear door of the aircraft. That solution is both clumsy and expensive.
Another solution is described in Swedish patent specification 513 504. In accordance with that patent specification, the passenger bridge is given mobility through the medium of a drive means arranged in the outer part of the bridge and having wheels that rest against the airport parking apron surface, wherein the passenger bridge includes telescoping parts. In accordance with that patent specification, the passenger bridge is driven by the drive means after an aircraft has been parked, so as to cause the drive means and the outer part of the passenger bridge to pass outwardly of the aircraft wing and then in behind the wing for connection to the rear door of the aircraft.
Although that Swedish patent provides a conceivable solution to the above-described problem, it itself causes a problem with regard to present-day large aircraft, such as the Airbus 380, which have two flight decks. In addition to requiring a passenger bridge in excess of 50 meters in length in order to move around the wing, the time taken to connect the bridge to a rear door would be unacceptably long. Moreover, the location of the bridge connection to the rotunda at the airport building would be much too high for the bridge to be connected to a rear door on the lower flight deck and to pass freely over the wing of the aircraft. The outermost tip of the wing of an Airbus 380 is situated at a greater height above the ground than are the doors on the upper deck.
The present invention solves that problem and provides a simple and convenient solution to the problem of connecting a passenger bridge to a rear door on the upper deck of a two-deck aircraft, and also a rear door on the lower deck of such an aircraft.